


Blood and Snow

by hellpenguin



Category: Fairy Tales and Related Fandoms
Genre: Curses, F/M, Fairy Tale Retellings, Prequel, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-20
Updated: 2012-12-20
Packaged: 2017-11-21 16:25:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/599781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hellpenguin/pseuds/hellpenguin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Once Upon A Time, there was a Queen and a Wolf.</p><p>But that's the thing about stories- they repeat.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Story of The Prince and the Little Maid

**Author's Note:**

  * For [butforthegrace](https://archiveofourown.org/users/butforthegrace/gifts).



Once upon a time, in a land wreathed in snow and ice, there existed a kingdom. Though, really, it was a Queen-dom, the king having died years past, the rule of the realm passing to his wife. 

Queen Ingrid had a son, Prince Kai. He was a young strong lad, always at play out in the rose garden with his childhood friend, Gerda. They grew up together in the royal nursery, he the young prince, she the daughter of a washerwoman in the castle. They shared the same nursemaid, and played together in their youth in the warm fire-lit hallways of the castle, laughter echoing off the stone. It was a joyous time, back then.

But then the King died. And the Queen's heart turned to ice. The castle became a quiet and lonely ghost of a place. No laughter, no joy. 

But Kai and Gerda found ways to meet, and their friendship grew beyond that of simple playmates. The prince gave his heart to the little maid, and she exchanged hers for it.

When the Prince came of age, the Queen arranged for him to be married to the Princess of a far away kingdom. Kai, fearing the date of their marriage (it was to be in the summer lands, a week hence), confessed to his mother that he could not be married, as he was in love with Gerda.

The Queen was furious. But what could she do? She could imprison the little maid. But Kai would rescue her. She could banish Gerda from the kingdom. But Kai would leave, too. There was only one remaining choice.

Late that night, she bundled herself in furs and traveled to the edge of her kingdom, to a little house made of ice on the edge of a deep and dark forest.

In that house lived the Troll Woman, a forest witch. She was rumored to be the devil herself, and her magics were known throughout the land as being cleverly wicked. The Queen told the Troll Woman of her son's wayward heart, and of his duty to his family.

The Troll Woman gave the Queen a vial of Mirror Dust. She warned her that a pinch in each eye of the sleeping prince would purge his heart of love. He would see the worst in the little maid upon waking, and would follow his mother's advice. Then they would leave for the summer lands instantly, and the little poor girl would have no choice but to stay behind.

The Queen paid the Troll Woman in silver coin and made her way back to the castle. She crept into her son's chambers and placed a pinch of the dust in each of his eyes. And then she went back to her bed and slept the peaceful dreams of the wicked.

In the morning, Kai woke up and went to his mother. She greeted him and asked him if he was ready to leave for his wedding.

"Of course, mother. I shall go pack." Pleased, the Queen watched her obedient son retire to his chambers.

On his way, Gerda found him in the hall. She asked if he had resolved his impending marriage. He assured her he had not. They were to leave as soon as he finished packing. The royal carriage was being prepared as they spoke. The little maid let out a cry and clung to him, asking what they were to do.

Kai pushed Gerda away from him and cursed her for her impudence. He did not love her, he never could love such a poor low-class peasant girl as herself, and he was a Prince. He was to marry a Princess and become a King. And with that, he marched to his chambers. The little maid huddled on the floor, her heart a shard in her chest.

That evening, the Queen and the Prince set out on their journey to the Summer Lands. Gerda watched them leave with tears in her heart. As she turned to go back to the castle, she found a strange ugly old woman in front of her.

"My dear, what is the matter?" And the little maid told the Troll Woman of her plight. The Troll Woman wiped the tears from her face. "All will be well. There is a way to revenge yourself upon the royal family, for it is true the Prince never loved you truly, and he has gone and broken your poor little heart. Come with me to my little ice house and we will fix this wrong."

And so the little maid went with the Troll Woman to her little ice house at the edge of the deep dark forest. And there, the Troll Woman wrapped the little maid in white furs and placed a pair of red shoes upon her feet and placed a little jewelry box in her hands.

"With these boots, you shall not feel the cold. With these furs, you will be able to call to your need all the creatures of the forest. And in this box is the gift you must give to the prince at his wedding, and it will cure him of all his wickedness." And then the Troll Woman placed an enchanted crown on the little maid, a silver circlet of metal that transformed the poor girls appearance to that of an Ice Queen. Her straw-like hair became golden ringlets, her raggedy dress the cold blue silk of a frozen lake, and her furs sparkled with silver stars.

The Troll Queen took Gerda out to the edge of the deep dark forest. A great reindeer emerged from under the boughs of pine. It knelt at her feet. At the Troll Woman's urging, Gerda climbed upon the beast. "He will take you to the summer lands. Hurry, the Prince is already far ahead."

And so the little maid set out on her journey. The reindeer ran faster than the northern wind, and in no time they had arrived at the site of the wedding. The newly-wed couple sat on thrones carved of oak as the guests laid presents at their feet. The Prince looked so happy with his bride, and Gerda's broken heart filled with anger. 

She walked up to the thrones, the jewelry box in her hands. All the guests quieted in awe- never had they seen such a coldly beautiful woman before, and she must be a Queen, for she had such silvery furs and glistening crown. The Prince's mother was not so beautiful as this new arrival.

"A gift, for the new King," she announced. Even her voice had been changed- deeper, stronger, clear as a bell. She curtsied and held out the box to the new King.

He opened it, and there upon the snow-white cushion rested a glistening red ball. The King gasped. He had never seen such a thing. He lifted it out of the box to show to the crowd. A hush fell. 

"What is this?" He asked of the beautiful stranger. But she could not answer, for she knew not herself what strange object the Troll Woman had given her. She opened her mouth to lie when the new Queen spoke up.

"An apple, my king. It is a fruit of our lands, though I must admit I had not before seen one so ripe and red."

"An apple!" The King raised the fruit to his mouth and bit into the crisp skin. The flesh beneath was the pale yellow-white of a full moon, he remarked to himself. And then his whole body quivered like a pool of water whose surface had been disturbed. He coughed, choking on the piece, and fell to the ground. 

There were many screams of the guests, and Gerda felt at once sad and happy, but could not escape for the press of bodies all around her.

But the King did not die. His appearance rippled once more, and then he was at once no longer the man he had been only seconds before. His countenance had become that of a white wolf, but for his eyes, which remained the rich amber color of his true form. He shook his head and started to growl.

The crowd flew apart, ladies screaming in fear. The new Queen herself fled from the sight of her husband. There remained only the snarling white beast and the little maid, who felt at last a sense of peace. 

"This is my curse," Gerda cried, to no one and everyone. "You will no longer have the ability to break another heart. You will be trapped in that body, you and all your family from this moment hence shall bear the mark of your folly!"

And the Little Maid closed her eyes, and the White Wolf attacked.


	2. The Story of the White Wolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The story does not end for all when it ends for one.
> 
> That's the thing about stories- they follow the living.

But that is not the ending of the story. It was the end for the Queen, but the Wolf lived on. He found his way back to his homeland and there, at the gates of the castle, was the Troll Woman, waiting for him.

He approached her warily, hackles raised, but she tut-tut-tutted at him. "Now now, little Prince, or I won't help you with your curse."

He knelt with relief at her feet, certain that she could break this spell upon him.

"I cannot turn you back into a man. Only the one you call the Snow Queen can break the curse. But I can lessen it for you: once a year, on the dawn of the summer solstice, you shall transform back into man until the dawn of the following day. And your life shall be a long one, Princeling."

And so the Wolf carried on his life. Every year he would change back into a man and enjoy the world for one day as he was supposed to. It was in this way that he spent the next hundred years and had many sons and daughters throughout the land.

There came a day when he was running through a forest and came upon a hunting party, led by a king and his step-brother. Upon seeing the strange wolf in their forest, the two gave chase.

They cornered the Wolf finally against an Oak tree, and in his fear, he lashed out, killing the King, and escaping back into the woods.

The step-brother of the king swore revenge upon the beast, and carried his dead brother's body back to the castle, to his Queen and Princess.

The Queen had not loved the King for many years, not since their daughter, Snowdrop, was born, and the King took to traveling to nearby towns and taking up with many other women. His brother saw this all with weary eyes, for he could not comment on the state of his brother's marriage nor begrudge the brother he grew up with.

The Princess, however, was quite accustomed to the way her father doted on her. She could have asked for anything, and it would have come true. She could have acted however she liked, and she would be forgiven. Now that he was gone, she grew reckless and cruel, took to torturing woodland creatures when no attention was paid to her.

The king's step-brother comforted the Queen in her loneliness, and it was not long before that comfort became comradeship, which in turn beget love. They were married, and Snowdrop found herself with a new father, and one that did not bestow gifts upon her. She hated her mother for it.

The new King, because of his quest to kill the White Wolf, became known as the Huntsman. Every few days he would ride out into the forest, searching for a trail to the beast's lair. Finally, one day he found it.

And so the White Wolf's story found itself an end. The Huntsman took the life of the beast that killed his brother. 

But Lo! The Huntsman was the great-great-great grandson of the Wolf!

In killing his great-great-great grandfather, the curse awakened in him. He had, instantly, memory of the cruel Snow Queen's spell, of becoming a wolf at her hand.

That is the end of the White Wolf's story, but it is only the beginning of The Huntsman's.


	3. The Story of The Huntsman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once Upon A Time, there was The End.
> 
> That's the thing about stories - they have a way of finding a new beginning.

The Huntsman made his way back to the castle with the White Wolf's body, eager to tell his Queen of the strange happenings in the forest, of these new memories in his head.

However, Fate would have it that the Queen's soul was the very same soul of the woman who cursed the Wolf. The Snow Queen. Just as quickly as his memories arrived, he knew on sight that his Queen was the one who cursed him, long ago.

He flew into a rage, pulled out a hunting knife, and lunged at her. Alas, her guards were quicker, and they threw him in the dungeon. 

The Queen wept in the Throne Room. Why would her husband come at her with a knife, with such rage in his eyes? What had she done to deserve such treatment at the hands of one she loved so dearly?

Snowdrop went to her step-father. "Tell me, Huntsman, what all has happened today?"

"I have killed the wolf, but it was your mother who had sent him. Your mother sent the wolf that killed your father, my girl. If I could be let out of this cell, I would slit her throat with my hunting knife, and this world would be rid of her wickedness."

Snowdrop believed it to be true. Her mother never loved her father, and now suddenly he is dead and she is married? It must have been her plan! She instructed the guards to open the door. But the guards were wise to Snowdrop's tricks, and would not. Cursing them, Snowdrop ran outside to the garden.

The Troll Woman found her there. "My dearie, whatever is the matter?" And Snowdrop relayed all: the betrayal of her mother, the loss of her father, the capture of her step-father, his threat to destroy the Queen.

"Well it seems there is a solution to all this mess." She handed Snowdrop a small pouch of dust and an apple. "Go back to the dungeon, Princess. Blow this Mirror Dust into the eyes of the guards, and they will be out of your way. Open the door, let your step-father out. Give him this apple. It will give him the strength to destroy your mother. He will not want to eat it, fair child, but you must convince him."

And little Snowdrop did as the Troll Woman told her. She blew the dust into the eyes of the guards, and the guards turned on one another and soon were dead by their own swords. She took the key from the dead guards, opened the door, and unshackled her step-father.

"I thank you, step-daughter. I loved your father the King as a true brother, and I have always considered you my dearest niece. It seems we were both tricked by the Queen, and I thank you for freeing me."

"I have a present for you, Huntsman," Snowdrop produced the apple from a pocket in her cloak. He knocked it from her hand and backed away from her in fear.

"Did the queen give you those?!" Betrayal swam in his eyes.

"No! I hate her! I hate her as much as you do, step-father! But a friend gave me this apple to give to you. It will help you kill her, I promise." She picked up the apple and held it out to him.

He pulled out his hunting knife and cleaved the fruit in two. "Then we will both eat this, and go finish her off together," he said, hoping to catch Snowdrop in a lie. If she knew of the poison of the apple, she would not be so eager to eat it. But the girl lifted her half to her lips and smiled.

"So it will be." And they bit into their halves.

But when Snowdrop saw her step-father become a White Wolf before her eyes, she gasped, and the enchanted apple caught in her throat and she fell down, dead.

The Huntsman, seeing his step-daughter's body, realized that she, too, had been tricked by the wicked queen, and he set out in search of her.

He found the queen in the throne room. 

And that was the end of the Queen, but not the end of her story.


End file.
